News Bulletin

16 December 2015

National Press:

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Parents hail naming of schools, college after slain APS students

The parents of martyred students of Army Public School Peshawar (APS) here Tuesday lauded Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif for renaming 122 colleges and schools of Islamabad after the slain students. They called it the best tribute by the government to the victims of the attack on its first anniversary, which is being observed today (Wednesday).

COAS Genreral Raheel Shareef has assured that the sacrifice of those who laid their lives for this motherland won’t go in vain. Anti-terrorist operation will be made more sustainable. This is the only way to commemorate the sacrifice of APS children. The Peshawar incident unified all the disarrayed segments of the society against the menace of terrorism. Rallies will be organized in all the country. PM and COAS will attend the function to be held in APS Peshawar.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has announced to observe December 16, the day when terrorists attacked Army Public School Peshawar and martyred more than 140 people including 132 children, as a ‘National Education Resolve Day’ to promote education.

AAG directed to consult government on law institutions university status

The Additional Advocate General was directed to consult the provincial government and inform the court on progress made to upgrade Khyber lawcollege to a university. The directive came from the Peshawar registry of the Supreme Court on Tuesday.

Secretary Education, Abdul Saboor Kaakar has said that the process of formulating education reforms is in full swing. Some of the reforms to be introduced include: primary level education in native language, basic education policy in primary schools, recruitment of 4800 teachers through NTS and ban on new recruitment.

Provincial minister of S & GAD, Nawab Muhammad Khan Shahwani has said that incumbent government has taken effective measures to promote education. Specially, girls’ education has been given the top priority. That is why the standard of education has improved as compared to the past.

Minister for Education, Mian Abdul Waheed has said that man keeps on learning until he is alive. Retired employees of education department should be revered. Ant-education elements have tried to sabotage AJK Government’s education policy. But they won’t be allowed to succeed in their mean designs.

State Minister for Federal Education and Professional Training Muhammad Balighur Rehman on Tuesday said education budget has been increased showing government’s seriousness for raising academic standards in the country.

Federal Directorate of Education is going to enroll 500 male and female teachers according to the Prime Minister’s education reforms programme against 1400 vacant positions in Federal Educational Institutions. Informed sources in CADD ministry said that to fulfill the 1400 vacant posts in the Federal educational institutions, 500 teachers would be recruited initially on priority basis to avoid the losses to students in their studies,.

One year has passed since Peshawar attack. But the security clearance of teaching and non-teaching staff of 422 academic institutes has not been taken care of. Boundary wall of 24 schools has also not been fixed.

Subsidiary of Ministry of CADD, PEIRA (Private Educational Institutes Registration Authority) has formed a new policy for registration of private schools. Only those schools will be registered which meet the building and other standards. Moreover, one year grace period has been given to the schools which have been established in residential schools for bringing them under the PEIRA rules.

FAST University Islamabad hosted the celebration of one successful year of collaborative excellence with HUAWEI yesterday. A new agreement ‘HUAWEI Authorised Information and Network Academy (HAINA)’ was also signed during the ceremony.

A 2-day International Conference on Emerging Trends of Researching Language, Linguistics and Literature (ETRL3) started today at Air University main campus Islamabad. Air UniversityDepartment of Humanities has organised the maiden international conference to highlight the importance of language and literature with particular focus on contemporary trends of researches.

Decision has been taken to hand over 274 primary schools to Punjab Education Foundation (PEF). Teacher organisations have voiced strong protest over this decision and demanded for its immediate withdrawal.

Greater intrusion in the education sector by NGOs, under the banner of public-private partnership, has worsened education standards rather than improving them, Punjab Teachers’ Union District Multan president Rana Altaf Hussain said a press conference on Tuesday.

Leaders and office bearers of Punjab Teachers Union have said that the menace of terrorism will be fought with the weapon of education. Teachers will play their role in the fight against terrorism by educating the children and making them averse to terrorist propaganda.

After enrolling more than 120,000 out-of-school children across Sindh, Education Fund for Sindh (EFS) has started its donation drive to support its mission. The EFS organised its awareness and fundraising drive at three different venues, Forum Mall, Millennium Mall and Port Grand to engage people and persuade them to be the part of this change movement.

While the security establishment has issued a terror threat warning for educational institutions in the city on the first anniversary of the Army Public School attack in Peshawar, the crucial Emergency Alert System (EAS) project launched for schools security in Karachi has been lying inoperative for the past three months owing to non-payment of dues, said sources and officials on Tuesday.

Iqra University held its 14th convocation in its Defense View Campus. VC Iqra University, Javed Lakhani said that students should burn the midnight oil for education and play their part in image building of Pakistan.

The status of socio-economic well being of any society can be gauged through the presence of libraries. Librarians play a vital role in academic grooming of the society. These views were expressed by the speakers on the occasion of inaugural of a recently decorated and renovated library complex on Sunset Boulevard DHA.

Administrative matters of education department have come to a halt because of limitations on jurisdictions of Additional Director Primary schools. This was revealed during a meeting of APCA headed by Liaqat Ali Khan.

The Sindh government on Tuesday announced a holiday across the province for Wednesday amid the punishing heatwave and power crisis that have so far claimed more than 780 lives as the chief minister and his cabinet announced a plan to hold a sit-in against K-Electric and the federal government, an official said.

The Sindh Education Alliance (SEA) has announced to start second phase of its massive struggle from today (Wednesday) to press the government for acceptance of its demands which included issues faced by the primary teachers and other lower school staff.

Federal government has decided to name 122 Federal schools and colleges after the names of APS Martyrs. This is a very noble and unique step to pay homage to our innocent victims of Peshawar school attack.

Famous pedagogue of history, Dr Waqar Shah has presented a paper in which he has analyzed the history books on Pakistan movement. He has concluded that the books have ignored most of our ancestors who had face jail and other atrocities of British government.

All the leaders should put aside their political differences in order to succeed in fight against terrorism. Similarly, government should also protest against Afghanistan for providing safe havens to the terrorist groups.

One year has passed since the Peshawar incident. We suffered another tragedy on 16 December 1971 too when we lost our eastern wing because of our inexperienced and careless leadership and conspiracies of our enemies. Even after one year to Peshawar incident, National Action Plan has not been implemented in its letter and spirit.

ONE year on, the horror of the Army Public School tragedy in Peshawar continues to haunt our conscience. Terror atrocities have killed thousands of people in this country and yet it remains unthinkable that anyone could target children. There are perhaps few parallels of such brutality in modern history. Children as young as 10 were among the victims.

One year. Even for a country that has witnessed a tableau of horrors over the past several years, Dec 16, 2014 set a new, terrible milestone. On that day, 144 innocents -122 students, and 22 teachers and support staff of the Army Public School, Peshawar were massacred in a terrorist attack that plunged the country into mourning and sent shockwaves around the world. It was a defining moment in Pakistan`s war against terrorism.

Focus after the Army Public School massacre in Peshawar shifted to many things in the subsequent days, weeks and months. Surviving students, bereaved families, school security, National Action Plan were all reappearing motifs. The one thing which few spoke of was: The school that was attacked was a boys school but girls were equally petrified about going back.

The terrorist attack on the Army Public School exactly one year ago was a turning point in national thinking about what to do with terrorism. Tragic and cowardly as the attack was, with very few parallels in history for mass murder of innocent children in their classrooms, it was not the first of its kind.

Some of the survivors of the December 16, 2014 attack on the Army Public School (APS) in Peshawar may never make a full recovery, even though they are physically uninjured. Others, dreadfully hurt, will suffer the after-effects, of the deadliest terrorist attack that Pakistan has ever seen, for whatever is left of their lives.

“I attended funerals from 9pm to 5am the following morning,” shares Aakif Azeem. “I could only attend nine funerals of my classmates even though more than 15 boys died from my class alone. I came home around 5.30am, but couldn’t fall asleep. My best friend Zain Iqbal’s funeral was at 11am in the morning.”

I had wanted to write an earnest piece of mourning for the victims of the APS attack today. As atrocities go, the memory of December 16, 2014 will not fade away easily. Certainly not this soon. The way that day felt, is present, and latent, like it could burst any moment.

On December 16, 2014, the Taliban’s mass murder of 144 students and faculty members of the APS in Peshawar dropped a chilling effect on the country. There followed a momentary national suspension of words and narrative – a silence borne of disbelief and palpable grief.

There have been several media reports about the high rates of monthly fees being charged by ‘elite private schools’. The general belief is that the majority of the students in these schools are from wealthy families. This is not true.

After the dismemberment of Pakistan on December 16, 1971, Pakistanis saw another tragedy on the same day in 2014 when more than 140 Army school students and their teachers were brutally murdered in Peshawar. It is time to look back at what we have done to eliminate the menace of terrorism.

Sindh with a large population plays an important role in terms of the country’s economy, but the standard of education is very low in the province. There are only a few institutions in urban areas that have shown some improvement, otherwise the education sector has been in a mess.

University Town was considered to be one of the best residential areas of Peshawar when it was being managed by the University Town committee. However, under the local government law, the committee was abolished and the area came under the care of the local TMA and nazim.

The pupils of the Army Public School, Peshawar, have indeed set forth an example of bravery which has no parallel. When the school re-opened in January after the December 16 massacre, the world watched in amazement as the pupils, injured, bruised and mentally scarred, walked back through the gates of the same institution that was engulfed in flames and drowned in blood the last time they had walked out of it.

This is with reference to the episode involving Dr S.K. Alqama, former vice-chancellor of Baha Uddin Zakria University (BZU) and Ambassador to Yemen. He happened to be my classmate at the Dhaka Model School back in the good old days where the Dhaka Nawab family, especially his father Khawaja Khairuddin, was considered synonymous with everything that was Pakistan.

It was wonderful to recently witness the prime minister visit a government model school near Islamabad. In his well-organised visit to the school, the prime minister freely mixed with the students and asked them about the school’s facilities.

Peshawar: The Sub Divisional Education Officer Male, Peshawar, Mr. Irfan Ali, paid a surprise visit to various primary schools of Peshawar and expressed his displeasure over absent teachers, deducting their salaries by a day and issuing them show cause notices.

Mardan: The leader ANP Union Mangah, Mr. Meer Zafar Khan said that the Government Primary Girls Primary School Sher Dil Khan Killi only has one female teacher and is facing an acute shortage of electricity and water.

Complete Story: Daily Khabrain, Peshawar, Page No. 2

Book Fair

Peshawar: Two days book fair was held in Khyber Medical College Peshawar University, by the National Book Foundation.

Jamrud: The FATA Teachers Representative, Ms. Dilshad Begum has said that, FATA female teachers have been deprived of their up-gradation for the past five years.

Complete Story: Daily Mashriq, Peshawar, Page No. 3

Meeting of KP Assembly Standing Committee for Education

Peshawar: A meeting of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Standing Committee for Education was held under the chairmanship of MPA Saleh Muhammad in the Assembly Secretariat. The committee decided to conduct another meeting in recommendations for the regularization of Teaching Assistants will be discussed

Complete Story: Awam-un-Nas, Peshawar, Page No. 2

Shortage of staff in School

Nowshera: The Government Girls Higher Secondary School Nowshera if facing shortage of staff.

District Bolan: The Director Education, Nasirabad said basic facilities have been provided to all the educational institutions under the educational emergency so that the youth of Balochistan should be equipped with weapon of Education to face the challenges of modern time.

District Quetta: The PSO South zone stated that open merit seats in BMC have reduced and have been shifted to area based quotas which is a violation of merit and injustice with talented students. PSO demanded to implement the open merit system for selection in BMC.

District Quetta: The administrator, Jamaet-e-Islami Balochistan Provincial Women Division, Ms. Samina Saeed said with emphasis that women education is necessary for national development and progress. She said that educating a woman is equivalent to education a whole family.Complete Story: http://e.jang.com.pk/12-16-2015/Quetta/page3.asp

Reforms will be introduced in education sector: Secretary Education

District Quetta: The Provincial Secretary for Education, Mr. Abdul Saboor Kakar said that reforms will be introduced in education sector for the development of education. These reforms include making native language the medium of instruction in primary schools for better comprehension among students and provision of basic facilities in all governmental schools.

District Mastung: The Principal Government Higher School Parang Abad, Mr. Yar Muhammad Bungulzai said during a press conference that 13 students of 2nd year have been expelled from the school on account of low attendance.

District Layyah: The Government Primary School Chak No.303/TDA does not have electricity and has only one teacher available to teach 100 students.

Complete Story: Daily Ausaf, Rahim Yar Khan, Page No. 03

School named after APS martyr

District Khanewal: The Government Boys High School Kabirwala has been named as Zargham Mazhar Shaheed School and its inauguration will be done today. The inauguration will be done by Major General Ammir Hasnat and the Commissioner Multan. This is to commemorate the martyrs of the Army Public School.

District Rahim Yar Khan: The examination fees for students of private schools which are partners of PEF have been waived off.

Complete Story: Daily Ausaf, Rahim Yar Khan, Page No. 03

Ban on Fun Fair functions

District Rahim Yar Khan: The Punjab Government has banned Fun Fair functions in Schools and Colleges throughout the Province.

Complete Story: Daily Ausaf, Rahim Yar Khan, Page No. 03

Teacher demand salaries before Christmas

District Raim Yar Khan: The teachers’ bodies appreciated EDO for what he was doing for teachers. They demanded a promotion package for teachers and also demanded salaries for Christian employees before Christmas.

Complete Story: Daily Ausaf, Rahim Yar Khan, Page No. 03

Sindh

Protest against Education and Works Department

District Naushero feroz: The social parties and contractors carried out protest against engineers and concerned clerks, alleging them of embezzling an amount worth 50 lac rupees. The development works have been left incomplete due to corruption.

District Larkana: The Government Boys Primary School, village Wakro, near Taluka Dokri, is facing shortage of class rooms. More than 500 students are enrolled in the school of which 200 students have to sit under the open sky and study.

District Dadu: The citizens of Dadu city, along with contractors held protest against Sub District Officer (SDO) Education and Works Department, alleging them of misappropriating millions of rupees of the budget through corruption.

District Sujawal: The students and residents of village Mehmood Wah, near Mirpur Bathoro, protested against the non-availability of school building and shortage of teachers. The school is currently operating in a private building.

District Khairpru Mirs: The teachers of other cadre continued their protest for the 39th day against stoppage of their salaries, and warned to hold protest before the Chief Minister House in case of continuance of neglect.

District Larkana: A new objective test was conducted in different schools of Taluka Ratodero, from the students of fifth class. The test comprised of, English, Social studies, Urdu, Mathematics and Science Subjects.

District Mirpur khas: A cultural program was organized by the students of Mipur Khas, where Commissioner, Mr. Shafique Ahmed Mehasar said that he felt proud of students of rural areas, who took active part in folk songs, debates and presentation of folk poetry in the program. He added that for spreading education, it is necessary to provide basic facilities to the schools.

Karachi: A seminar, on the title of “Future of students”, was organized by the Social Welfare Department, along with other civil society organizations. It was declared that about 20 thousand schools in Sindh province are non-functional, most of which have turned to storage houses owing to the carelessness of Education Department.